Albatross

And I had done a hellish thing,
And it would work 'em woe:
For all averred, I had killed the bird
That made the breeze to blow.
Ah wretch! said they, the bird to slay,
That made the breeze to blow!

Any mariner will tell you one thing: The Tides have rules. To break them is a mistake few mariners have the chance to make twice. Anyone worth his salt will tell you these by heart: Never set sail on a Friday. Never hire a man named Jonah. Never rename your ship. Never let an untrained man whistle. The list continues. These taboos make up the law of the sea, and the punishment for infractions is often a miserable death in cold, dark waters. There is one law, however, that stands above the rest. A law that even a sailor who wished for death would not break. A law that can hardly be spoken above hushed tones, lest the ire of the Tides be stirred up. A law that goes as follows: Never kill an albatross.

Superstitious Seabirds

Albatrosses are truly beautiful seabirds, with massive wingspans capable of carrying them across the Tides with very little energy expenditures. Their beauty, however, is not the reason for their protected status. Rather, it is their associations. It is a common belief that seabirds hold the souls of departed sailors, but albatrosses are special. They serve the sea itself, and gain special protection from King Neptune as a result. To harm one would incur his wrath, and the tortures he is capable of enacting are beyond human comprehension.
It is also believed that albatrosses hold power over the sea, and to get in one's good graces is in a sailor's best interests. Thus, food is often left out whenever an albatross is spotted, and all its needs are to be met, for having an albatross as a friend means that the wind will always fill your sails, and you will always find your destination. Those ships lucky enough to have an albatross make a nest upon them are truly blessed, and are oft destined for greatness.

Wings of Wind

These beliefs and superstitions, while not precisely correct, still have quite a bit of truth to them. Namely, albatrosses are often much more than simple birds. There are plenty of albatrosses who are indeed nothing more than dumb seabirds, no more supernatural than a common gull. Others, however, are much more than that. The albatross is the favored bird of the Old Man, and it takes those Feral Winds who take an albatross as a physical vessel under its wing, allowing them to serve it. Additionally, it often places the names of its favored Antediluvians into the bodies of albatrosses after they die. Thus, if one kills an albatross, one may be killing a servant of the Old Man, incurring its dreadful wrath.
Additionally, albatrosses do indeed bring fortune to those ships in their favor. Being a Feral Wind or Antediluvian Whisper-Wind in a feathered body, they have an innate power over the Tides. They can will up favorable or terrible winds, cool breezes or storms and fog, depending on their mood. However, as they are not particularly intelligent beings, something as simple as food or a welcoming place to sleep could be enough to win an albatross' favor, and ensure good sailing.